The present invention relates to a portable support fixture for use in waxing and sharpening snowboards and skis and, in particular, to such a portable fixture which has no moving parts and is relatively simple, lightweight and inexpensive to manufacture and may be used without removing the bindings.
Skis and snowboards are commonly provided with steel edges which must be occasionally sharpened to grip on icy slopes. A bench vise is generally used for holding a ski or snowboard in an edge up position for sharpening the edge. A bench vise is also often used for holding a ski to expose the bottom surface to be waxed, repaired or flat filed. Such vises are expensive, space consuming, and not generally portable. Further, vises are not generally suited for holding snowboards to expose the bottom surface to be waxed, repaired, or flat filed.
In accordance with conventional technology, there are primarily two types of portable fixtures for waxing and sharpening skis. The first type of fixture uses a pair of jaws, at least one movable, as a vise to hold the ski. Examples of such vise fixtures are shown in Romanin U.S. Pat. No. 4,341,375, Durkee U.S. Pat. No. 3,861,664, and Vovk, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,382,588. Vise fixtures have a number of movable parts which may be expensive to manufacture, assemble and maintain. Further, while vises may hold skis for both sharpening and waxing, they are generally not well suited to hold snowboards for waxing.
Another type of portable fixture for skis uses spaced support segments and a clamp which holds the skis against the support segments. An example of this type of fixture is shown in Browne U.S. Pat. No. 4,048,700. Such support/clamp devices require at least two supports and a clamp, cannot be used to hold a snowboard, and are virtually useless if the clamp is lost.
Many families and groups travel together to ski sites with both skis and snowboards. Maintaining skis and snowboards is desirable at ski sites or when a skier or snowboarder may wish to work on his skis or snowboard in preparation for the next day's activities. Accordingly, there exists a need for an efficient, inexpensive and versatile support fixture for supporting and positioning both skis and snowboards for sharpening, waxing and maintaining, which support fixture is portable and may be attached to a variety of surfaces for working on skis and snowboards at substantially any location.